Register Now

In order to be able to post messages on the The Planted Tank Forum forums, you must first register.
Please enter your desired user name, your email address and other required details in the form below.

User Name:

Password

Please enter a password for your user account. Note that passwords are case-sensitive.

Password:

Confirm Password:

Email Address

Please enter a valid email address for yourself.

Email Address:

Log-in

User Name

Remember Me?

Password

Human Verification

In order to verify that you are a human and not a spam bot, please enter the answer into the following box below based on the instructions contained in the graphic.

Additional Options

Miscellaneous Options

Automatically parse links in text

Topic Review (Newest First)

11-05-2012 06:42 PM

mrramsey

Update

Here is where I am with the STS substrate - Before and After

11-04-2012 10:14 PM

mrramsey

Actually i ended up just using the safe t sorb! I think it looks great. The water is still a little work cloudy nit should be back to normal in the morning. I think i will order some plants this week.

11-04-2012 03:25 PM

mrramsey

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diana

You could indeed put a better quality substrate in areas you want to plant.
I would be concerned that if the 2 materials (sand and plant specific substrate) are different weights one will drift under the other, not stay in place. Using sand and EC might be safer that way.
If you like the look of Safe-T-Sorb, you could use 100% STS, no sand. It is a high CEC material that is really good for plants. I would not use sand in the same tank unless there was a physical barrier between the 2. I did that with Soil Master Select, and the sand (heavier) kept moving, ending up mostly at the bottom of the tank, and the SMS on top, but just mixed enough that they cannot be separated.

If the substrate leaches ammonia that can be useful if you are doing the fishless cycle.
If you will be cycling the tank faster then you would still have to wait it out until the substrate quits producing the ammonia.

I would do the hardscape and planting, then do the fishless cycle.

Safe-T-Sorb and the related materials, sand, EC and many other substrates do not produce ammonia when they are submerged.

So if I use the safe t sorb as a base what type of a physical barrier would I do then to cap it with sand?

11-01-2012 04:31 PM

kruzerman

I second the Safe t sorb. It was only $4.99 for 40 lbs at tractor supply last week. That price alone makes it worth the trip to a TS.

11-01-2012 02:55 PM

PaulG

Don't use eco complete, there's nothing in it.

Also, yes, you can just use substrate where the plants will be but remember where you first place the plants isn't necessarily where the roots will end up!

10-31-2012 11:06 PM

Diana

Oh yea, on the timing:
I would set up the hardscape and plant the tank.
Then do the fishless cycle. If you are using plants that are sensitive to ammonia you might cycle it a bit differently. Add no more ammonia than it takes to reach 1 ppm, but add that much twice a day. That will still grow lots of bacteria, but the ammonia peak will not be so high as to burn the plants.

10-31-2012 11:04 PM

Diana

You could indeed put a better quality substrate in areas you want to plant.
I would be concerned that if the 2 materials (sand and plant specific substrate) are different weights one will drift under the other, not stay in place. Using sand and EC might be safer that way.
If you like the look of Safe-T-Sorb, you could use 100% STS, no sand. It is a high CEC material that is really good for plants. I would not use sand in the same tank unless there was a physical barrier between the 2. I did that with Soil Master Select, and the sand (heavier) kept moving, ending up mostly at the bottom of the tank, and the SMS on top, but just mixed enough that they cannot be separated.

If the substrate leaches ammonia that can be useful if you are doing the fishless cycle.
If you will be cycling the tank faster then you would still have to wait it out until the substrate quits producing the ammonia.

I would do the hardscape and planting, then do the fishless cycle.

Safe-T-Sorb and the related materials, sand, EC and many other substrates do not produce ammonia when they are submerged.

If you have an inch or two of pool sand over the dirt, it should slow the rate that anything from that leaches into the water column. You could also try rinsing the dirt to remove the easily soluble stuff.

I find it easier to set up the hardscape, then go get the plants and plant them, and then fill the tank and gradually add the critters, but that's just me.

10-31-2012 07:17 PM

mrramsey

Substrate - only targeting planted areas?

Hi again,Thanks for the input. I still have a question or two before I start working on this remodel project this weekend.

My tank design is mainly going to be a pool sand base with rocks and wood as a centerpiece growing java fern and anubias on them. I would also like some taller BG plants in the corners and maybe some shorter foreground plants in front.

Is it advisable to ad eco complete or some other substrate just in the areas where I want additional plantings? I really don't want spend another $60+ on substrate to cover the entire tank bottom, but think the tank may look a bit bare if I don't add some additional plants.

I have heard of people using miracle grow potters mix but that introduces ammonia from the animal waste in it. I have stock that will need to go back into the tank ASAP.

Also just wondering about timing... should I introduce just the hard scapes now and plant in a couple weeks or do it all at once?